“Roelle, honey are you alright?”
Roelle nodded and managed to get out a brief mmhmm before sipping on her water.
“Fine.”
She later choked out. She eased back in her chair and continued to eat her breakfast silently. Meredith decreased the furrow in her brow and turned back to her breakfast, which she was currently deciding if she should order a to-go meal. Roelle had been acting strange for the last couple of days. Was it because she said someone was hurting her? Because she wishes she could tell her sister that she was fine. That she was just heartbroken and just needed some time to heal. But no, Gabrielle had to be a girl and Meredith had to be madly in love with her, which seems like the best kept secret as of late.
***
The head manager told Gabrielle to take her frustration out on the balls and to go shoot rather than warm up with the team. Gabrielle was happy to do so but the keeper rolled her eyes and winced, already feeling Gabrielle’s powerful left foot snap her wrists in two. She had been barking at the entire team since lunch. Gabrielle ignored everyone on the bus ride and took a seat in the very back rather than her normal seat with Becca. Everyone decided not to pick a fight with her giving it was game day and they figured she would be out of her mood by whistle blow. Gabrielle alternated from her left foot to her right; the keepers alternating as well. She made shot after shot, some hitting the keepers hands for the sole purpose of Gabrielle's pleasure and the rest easily going in. She calmed down after a couple of shots and joined her team again. They all greeted her with hesitant smiles. As possession started, Gabrielle focused. As pissed off and frustrated she was that things had not been going her way as of late, she needed to put her feelings to the side and concentrate of this match. After two hours of practicing, the team had a pep talk and headed back to their respective areas. Becca stayed back with Gabrielle as the team walked inside the hotel.
“Look, I’m not gonna walk on egg yolks for you like the rest of the team just so I won’t piss you off. Are you good or not? Because if you aren’t I’m here. I’ll be whatever you want me to be; your mother, your sister, your shrink. Whatever. I just need to know if you’re game ready.”
Gabrielle looked up at Becca, a glint in her eyes that Becca detected as terror, angst or both. Gabrielle turned away from her teammate and the two walked in silence. Gabrielle let the calm of the city streets be the sound over the awkward silence she was currently sharing with Becca.
“It’s egg shells.”
Gabrielle quietly said after a moment or two of silence.
“What?”
“Egg shells, Beccy. And Meredith is coming to the game tonight.”
Becca stopped and cocked her head to the side to look at her teammate.
“Meredith, Meredith? Well fuck.”
Gabrielle shook her head and lazily placed her hands into her sweatpants pockets before sighing heavily.
“So sorry if I’ve been more bitchy than my usual self but I am so angry, and happy and nervous as fuck all at the same time and I don’t know how to handle all of that.”
The two best friends stayed silent for the rest of the walk to the hotel and Becca didn’t decide to speak until they reached the elevator.
“Okay."
Becca nodded.
"Okay what?"
I can work with that now that you’ve explained your behavior but first let me say, Gaby, you cannot keep everything to yourself. As much of a hardass you want to be, you cannot stand on this world alone.”
Gabrielle rolled her eyes and kicked a piece of snow.
“There are people here for you and you shutting us out will only make your life miserable. Now as for Meredith, I hate to be the bear of bad news- I think that’s how you say it—but Meredith is as important as that little spec of snow falling on the ground. You cannot let her get to you. I totally understand that you’re going through the emotions, that’s normal, but this game is crucial and you and me, we’re the crucial assets to winning this game okay?”
Becca yanked Gabrielle’s long mane of hair and smiled.
“Okay.”
***
Meredith made sure she was running late so she would hopefully get there when the game was over. She had bathed twice, brushed her teeth three times and she now was currently sitting on her bed, pretending to contemplate over which jacket to wear while trying to drown out her sister’s voice from the other side of the hotel door.
“Meredith come on! Since when have you put so much thought into your outfit! We’re going to miss the
